WILMINGTON — The ninth annual Wilmington Get Together picnic and second annual Wilmington Get Together parade will return this Saturday.

First conceived last year as a bicentennial parade concurrent with the community day, the parade was such a success that it was brought back this year and integrated into the Wilmington Get Together picnic event schedule, according to Wilmington town Supervisor Roy Holzer.

“We’re celebrating the community in a time where community needs to be celebrated,” Holzer said.

Like last year’s bicentennial parade, a string of vehicles and groups on foot will leave Park Lane at 1 p.m. escorted by deputies from the Essex County Sheriff’s Department. From there, the parade will turn left onto state Route 86 by the Little Supermarket and proceed to the Wilmington Town Beach, where the Wilmington Get Together picnic will begin.

The Wilmington Get Together picnic started in 2013 when Sadie Hozley noticed that the town of Wilmington was beginning to change — lifelong citizens were dying and she felt that many people were getting too busy to spend time together.

“I asked myself a question,” Hozley said. “What can we do to get everyone together for one day?”

Her answer was to organize a community picnic, complete with a potluck, live music and games for children. Ten years and eight picnics later — two of the events fell to the wayside during the coronavirus pandemic — the Wilmington Get Together is now a summer tradition. Open to past and present residents of Wilmington, former community members have returned to the Wilmington Town Beach from as far away as South Carolina and Florida to reconnect with friends and family.

The Get Together, while town-wide, is not an event organized by the town government.

“The town has been so awesome helping,” Hozley said. She has intentionally kept Get Together an independent event and describes the event as apolitical — a “low-key” opportunity to unite, put political differences aside and appreciate one another as neighbors.

In keeping with the spirit of togetherness, all money raised at the event goes directly to next year’s picnic. Additional funds are raised through the donation of recyclables throughout the year.

“It’s a true community event,” Holzer said, describing the breadth of participation in the parade and picnic.

The second annual Wilmington Get Together parade will begin at 1 p.m. All — even those who do not live in Wilmington — are welcome to join the parade, provided they have RSVPed to Tina Terry Preston, deputy town supervisor, or to Holzer. The parade will end at Wilmington Town Beach, where judges will determine the three best entries.

The Get Together picnic will begin after the parade at 3 p.m. and last until 8 p.m. Vince DuBois and Gwen Tracy will both perform. There will be a bounce house and face painting available for children. Attendees are encouraged to bring a dish to pass around and lawn chairs, though there will be free hot dogs and hamburgers for all.

The Get Together picnic is still in need of volunteers. Anyone interested in donating their time can contact organizer Hozley for more information.